


Christmas Lights

by Bitway



Category: Cardfight!! Vanguard
Genre: ANYWAY MERRY LATE CHRISTMAS NINA, Christmas gift, Established Relationship, M/M, christmas light sightseeing, his brother makes a brief appearance at the end!, its mainly about these two
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:48:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28376478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bitway/pseuds/Bitway
Summary: Naoki and Aichi go on a date to see a neighborhood that's decorated for the holidays.
Relationships: Ishida Naoki/Sendou Aichi
Kudos: 4





	Christmas Lights

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sunshineasuto](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineasuto/gifts).



"Hey, there it is!" Naoki shouts as he points ahead.

A crowd of people were making their way into a small neighborhood. For the holidays, this area coordinated with each other and together they would decorate their houses by putting up lights, various types of snowmen, life-sized ornaments, light up reindeer, and more. A couple would even work together to make their yards seem like a winter wonderland. And the house at the end would have Santa's sleigh with a beautifully decorated backdrop- perfect for pictures.

Naoki had suggested to come out here and experience the festivities. With Aichi, of course.

While the entrance itself wasn't as grand as the houses, it was easy to be excited for what was to come. Turning his head, Naoki catches Aichi's blue eyes shining, sparkling like a star on top of a Christmas tree. He leans forward, hands pressing together and lets out a small, "woah," that's accompanied by a small, fleeting cloud that passes his lips.

"And that's only the beginning."

"I can't wait to see the rest."

Naoki can't help but grin; he was proud of his suggestion for this date. At first he didn't think it would be all that exciting. He would have loved to have taken Aichi somewhere else, but most places wanted reservations or they were hours away or too popular which meant they would be crowded and busy. Not only would they have to plan for it, but they would need the funds to.

As they tried to figure out something to do tonight, Naoki had offhandedly suggested this neighborhood. When he was younger his parents brought him and his brother to see the decorated houses. It was an amazing experience that he could still remember to this day. These past couple of years his parents had been too busy, the same for his brother. It felt too weird to go alone as if a spark was missing, so he just stopped going.

Then he heard that Aichi had never been here. And he was shocked. This neighborhood wasn't too far from their school and he thought the other boy would have done something similar in his youth, but...he hadn't. Aichi admitted that his mom tried to bring him and his sister one year, but the latter got sick. Apparently, he had never tried going to a neighborhood like this since. At that moment, Naoki decided to bring him here.

The first thing they see when they enter is a Happy Holidays sign adorned with flashing lights. An illuminated Santa stands beside it to greet the folks inside. The house behind it is simple. It's decorated in nothing but white lights, the grass being covered in a white blanket to imitate snow. Some inflatable snowmen hang around and there's a snowy arch that leads to their house.

The house across from them is completely different. Their lights are colorful and even coordinate with the music that's blasting from the speakers. The tree outside their home is covered in lights and huge presents are set underneath it. Illuminated dogs, penguins, and candy canes are littered about, mixed in with an inflatable polar bear. It was more messy but you could tell they were in the holiday spirit.

"Pretty cool, huh?"

"They're so...pretty," Aichi gasps, eyes fixated on the house. "The houses by us just hang up lights. Barely anyone decorates."

"Really?" Had he not noticed? Well, Christmas was a week away, so they had time to decorate...if they really wanted to.

As they move onto the next few houses, Naoki catches Aichi holding himself. Then he notices the boy shiver and how he is lightly dressed. He still wore a turtleneck but the sweater over that was pretty thin. If it were to snow, it would do nothing to protect him from the cold. Seeing him shiver again makes him ask-

"You okay, Aichi?"

"Huh? Yeah." He forces a smile and Naoki stares (which can easily be mistaken as a glare). "W-Well..." Aichi keeps up that weak smile but he can't stop his teeth from chattering. "It's...kinda cold..."

Naoki frowns. Okay it was pretty cold and getting colder especially at night. It hadn't bothered him but it could have been because of the jacket he wore or the fact that he was preoccupied with just being out here with Aichi. Whatever the reason, it didn't matter. What did matter was that Aichi was cold.

"We can go back and grab an extra sweater or something?"

"But we're already here and I..." He gulps and a blush spreads across his cheeks. "I really want to be out here with you."

Naoki can't help but blush in return. Aichi was too damn cute, especially during moments like this. When he was honest and just a little embarrassed. Truthfully, he was ready to run back home, grab a sweater, and hand it over to him within seconds. But that wasn't possible nor did it sound great when he really thought about it. Still, he couldn't let Aichi be cold for the rest of the night.

If they couldn't go back to get him an extra layer of clothing, then, Naoki decided, that he would just have to give up his own. As he takes off his jacket, he looks over to Aichi. It takes a moment for him to realize what he's doing and before he could protest, Naoki has already placed the jacket over his shoulders.

"Put it on."

"What about you, Naoki? You need this as much as I do."

"I'll be fine. It'll take more than snow to get me cold." He says as proudly as possible. At least he had a scarf, albeit a little thin, but it was better than nothing.

Aichi bites on his lip and hesitates. Eventually, he pulls his arms through the sleeves and relaxes into the newfound warmth.

"Thanks, Naoki."

It makes him smile and his heart beats a little faster.

"Time to see the rest, yeah?"

Without thinking, Naoki grabs a hold of his hand. It's small and cold but fits right into his. After taking a couple of steps forward he realizes what he had done.

"Uh...Hope you don't mind. It's so you'll be warm...er."

Aichi chuckles in response and squeezes his hand.

"I'll do my best to keep you warm too."

With a shy smile, they continue into the neighborhood. Each house seems to be more festive than the last, minus a few but even those tried with their limited decorations. And it didn't take away from the magic of this holiday either.

Families and couples surrounded them, the latter making them a little more flustered, especially when they caught them kissing for a photo. Bright blue eyes would meet with dull yellow and their cheeks would flare up. Naoki would tighten his hold every time and apologizes afterward.

Now its Naoki's turn to shiver. As much as he wanted to seem immune to the cold, it was getting to him. He wouldn't let it show to Aichi, not when they were almost done. The final house was just one block away, he could manage. The thought of having to walk home in the cold hadn't hit him yet.

When they finally reach the end, there's a line to take a picture in Santa's sleigh. While it lacked the jolly man himself, the background made up for it. A 'Merry Christmas' sign was up behind it, elves with presents in their hands looked as if they were working to fill up the sleigh, and there were even a couple of reindeer standees with Rudolph being the star.

After taking a picture of the scene itself, the couple go to sit in the sleigh. Naoki nervously puts an arm around Aichi and he does the same. The shorter boy leans against him, head resting against his shoulder so they could get an easier selfie. Naoki stumbles with the first picture, his hand shaking from the cold and just being so close to Aichi. On the second try he gets them both.

"I'll send it to you." Naoki says and considers making it his wallpaper for the holiday. At home he'll do it. He's not sure if that's weird to do right in front of him.

"So," Naoki clears his throat as they pass by the houses one last time. "Did you...like it?"

"I did!" Aichi chirps. "It was so amazing seeing so many decorated houses together. I wish I knew about this sooner."

"I can find some more!" Naoki replies. "I mean, I'm pretty sure this ain't the only neighborhood that does this kinda stuff, you know?"

"We can look together. Or maybe ask the others if they know any places."

Before Naoki can respond, he sneezes. He sniffles afterwards, doing his best not to see the worried look that crosses Aichi's face.

"You should have your jacket back."

"It's fine." Naoki puts his hand on top of Aichi's shoulder to stop him from taking it off. "Its just uhh...the wind! It got to me is all." He says with a small grin. It was painful to lie, but he didn't want to chance him getting sick now. "Besides, we're going home. I'll just run to my place after."

"Okay..."

He doesn't sound convinced but Aichi isn't one to argue. All he does is take Naoki's hand and does his best to warm it with both of his. It's a sweet gesture and makes Naoki's heart melt.

They stop at the door to Aichi's place, neither one wanting to say goodbye. It's only when Naoki fails at holding back another sneeze does Aichi let go of his hand.

"I'll text ya when I'm home," Naoki says.

"Alright...be careful, okay?"

Naoki nods and turns on his feet. He stopped suddenly thanks to Aichi grabbing his wrist. When he turns to see him, the other makes a quick move to press his lips against his cheek. When he pulls back, his- their faces are both red.

"G-Goodnight, Naoki."

"G'night," he mumbles before dashing off. That had given him some newfound energy. Even if his body was cold, his heart was filled with warmth.

~...~

"You're an idiot, you know that?" Masaki sighs. "You shouldn't have been out so late without a jacket."

Naoki doesn't have the energy to roll his eyes or bark back at his brother. He did have a jacket he just gave it to his boyfriend. Instead, he just groans and hides under his blankets.

"Go away," he mutters just loudly enough for him to hear.

He doesn't see his brother roll his eyes, and he doesn't care. He means well...in his own way. But all he wants to do right now is try not to get snot all over his bed or cough up a lung.

"Alright," his brother replies, "but what am I supposed to do about your boyfriend?"

Naoki's eyes shoot open and he sits up so fast that the world spins and he feels worse than before. The image of his brother is replaced with Aichi and for a second he wonders if he's just hallucinating this. There was no way Aichi could be here.

"Naoki!"

Okay, that definitely sounded like Aichi. Maybe he wasn't hallucinating after all. Gentle hands push him back down to bed. After keeping his eyes closed to help get his vision back to normal, he opens them to see Aichi with a worried expression. He catches sight of his brother at the door to his room with a look of 'we'll talk later'. Whatever. He'll worry about what his brother wanted to say when the time comes.

"What're you doing here?" Naoki asks. He turns his head to cough, away from Aichi.

"You told me you were sick so...I came to check up on you."

_Oh._

He texted him he was sick? Probably. Honestly, this morning was all kinds of fuzzy. The only thing on his mind was the night before and how much fun he had with him.

"I don't want you gettin' sick..."

"But...this was because of me."

Naoki weakly glares. No, no it isn't, he wants to argue. It was his fault for trying to act tough in front of the boy he liked. He should have asked beforehand if he was ready for the cold instead of just springing that date on him.

"It's not." Is all that he can manage. Ugh. Terrible. He's making this up to him when he feels better.

"But-"

"Aichi." His voice cracks and it sounds horrible. "It's my fault. Shoulda worn something underneath. Besides...I had fun with ya." A smile forms from his lips. It's genuine and works its magic on Aichi. Somewhat. It's hard to tell when you feel like crap. "Anyway, you shouldn't be here...I don't want you catching this from me."

Aichi takes Naoki's hand, ignoring his weak warning. It's warm and nice and pleasant and he doesn't want to let go of him again. If he wasn't sick, he would have pulled the other into a hug.

"I won't get sick," he reassures. "But I want to help you get better. Then we can have another night like that again."

That alone is enough to make Naoki want to pass out just so it can come true. But it also makes him ridiculously happy to hear, enough that he sits up, _again_ , and regrets doing so, _again_ , but only after he says-

"I'll get better before you know it!"


End file.
